eBay Gift Certificates Overview

I hope it’s a good idea because I just gave one to MsGift for her birthday!

But, I thought about it a bit before I went ahead and purchased it. First, while I know MsGift very well, I don’t actually think she uses eBay all that often. At least it hasn’t come up in the last year and a half (and we talk Internet stuff every day).

So, why would I decide on that as a gift?

• It’s a unique gift
• If she doesn’t use eBay now, she might enjoy exploring it a bit (knowing she has some $$ to spend for free)
• You can buy almost anything there
• An eBay gift certificate can help you buy some pretty cool stuff that you wouldn’t see on Amazon or other shopping sites (like some of the items I talked about in my post about helping someone start a collection)
• Honestly, it was quick & easy (and I think I would have had a hard time figuring out what store to go to - although I bet I could have gone to someplace local and “funky” to get a fun/funny present)

The downside to giving an eBay gift certificate:

• The recipient might find it a bit of a pain in the… to buy something on eBay if they are not used to shopping there
• Like any gift certificate, it could just go unused
• Invariably, the $$ amount will likely either cause the recipient to pony up more of their own money, or there will be an unused remnant that will just sit there in limbo

I’m hoping that MsGift will someday share her experience on this site about receiving and using this little B-day present…

I am not really a flowers and chocolate kind of girl, I never have been and I doubt I will become one. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy getting them every once in a while but too much and they lose their meaning. And well, I think that’s what happens. Flowers have become the ‘go-to’ for anniversaries, birthdays and of course apologies.

There has to be something else. What do you get for your wife or girlfriend or mother when flowers have been over done? How about an edible bouquet?

Edible Arrangements has these awesome baskets that are made of fruit and are designed to look like flower bouquets. They come in different sizes, offer different fruits and frankly are just plain delicious!

The best part is you can get any of the fruit in your bouquet dipped in chocolate! They have baskets for all occasions and you are able to customize each one. My favorite is definitely the Berry Chocolate Bouquet. Mmm my mouth is watering just thinking about it.

Prices run between $30 and $300 and bouquets can be delivered that day (depending on location).

Here’s a unique gift idea - help someone start a collection of some kind.

I got this idea initially because I saw that a friend of mine had a really cool collection he was building for himself. He started collecting stock certificates of companies that had either gone bankrupt or were no longer in existence:

Enron	Penn. Railroad Company	Gray Manufacturing Co.

He would buy them on eBay and then frame them. This collection made sense for him because he is a portfolio manager at a financial services firm.

(A train fan might also like this idea if all of the stock certificates were for railroad companies of yesteryear.)

My former brother-in-law had a collection of antique fans:

I have a small collection of antique mini oil lamps. I prefer the copper/brass bottom and glass top, but there are many, many varieties to choose from:

Here are some other ideas for collections:

• Foreign currency
• Vintage advertising prints
• Antique medicine bottles (check out Antique Medicine Bottle Hall of Fame)
• Flags from foreign countries (I have a collection of old Soviet Union flags)
• Chess sets
• Vintage signs
• Candle holders
• Coasters
• Comic books
• Movie posters - vintage or current
• Vintage/Unique T-Shirts

Feel free to share other kinds of collections that would make good gifts…

I have been giving my brother the same gifts for as far back as I can remember - video games, gift cards, clothes, CD’s, money and so on. We have come to the point where we simply tell each other what we want and the idea of gift giving has lost all meaning.

This year I really wanted to give him something different, something fun and more importantly something personal. I started thinking about what he liked and I came up with a great idea. He loves movies. I am good at making gift baskets. So why not a movie gift basket!?!

What You Will Need for a Movie Gift Basket

• 1 Basket - This can be bought at any Target, Wal-Mart or craft store

• Tissue paper & Ribbon

• 2-3 movies - What movies you choose are what really make the basket. For my brother I got him a couple new movies I know he enjoys and one movie we loved watching together as kids. If you are looking to save some money, check out Target’s $9.99 DVDs or Blockbusters 2 for $20 deals on used DVDs.

• Movie Passes/Gift Certificates - You can go two ways on this - buy a movie gift card or buy actual movie tickets. If you are making this for someone who you aren’t going to take to the movies then I’d recommend buying a movie gift card (check out Regal’s ultimate premiere pack ). If you want to actually take the giftee to the movies then buy a couple of movie tickets for a show they want to see.

• Popcorn - A big bucket of popcorn isn’t necessary. Who finishes that anyway? Orville Redenbacher’s movie theater butter microwave popcorn (3 bags) is delicious and fits nicely into the gift basket. I usually remove the packets from the box and put a few individual bags into the basket.

• Candy - What does the person like? For my brother I chose M&M’s, Milk Duds and Junior Mints.

• Soda (or Pop) - Cans and bottles both work but it is important to make sure that they aren’t cold when you put them into the basket. They’ll start to sweat and stick to your tissue paper and it’ll really put a damper (get it? ‘damp’er…sorry) on your gift basket.

Once you have everything you can begin to arrange it. I like to put the tissue paper down, place my movies in the back, sodas on the side and candy, popcorn and movie tickets in the front. Everyone has their own eye so do what looks best to you.

How much does a movie basket cost to make?

The great thing about this is you choose how much you want to spend. A smaller basket costs less because it has less space to fill. You can add as much or as little as you want.

A small basket will probably run you about $30-$40 while a larger one could cost upwards of $75.

Too Lazy to make your own?

There are several companies out there who create gift baskets with movie themes. While they won’t be as personal, they only require a click of the mouse and your credit card number.

• Awesome Creations
• Wooden Crate Creations
• Amazon

If you know anyone that’s obsessed with taking pictures, and then organizing them in albums and frames (as I am), then this is the perfect gift.

Digital photo frames come in so many different sizes, styles, & materials. You can view the pictures individually or as a slide show and they can be displayed as portrait or landscape. You can set your slide show to shuffle pictures at different time intervals - by the minute, hour, day, etc.

Traditional Frames
Wallet-Size
Keychain

The one catch is that the individual receiving the gift must already have a digital camera as a memory card is needed to be inserted into the digital frame.

Check out some of the characteristics you can find in the different frames:

• Frame styles - wood, clear, black, metal
• Color photos or black & white
• Remote control
• Sound
• Plays video
• Wi-Fi
• Wall mountable

Here are some places to buy digital photo frames online (links take you directly to digital photo frame pages):

• Brookstone
• Sharper Image
• Amazon.com